Paweł Uchorczak is both a landscape photographer and an explorer, incredibly at home on a European mountain range, thousands of feet up with nothing but the clouds – and his Canon camera – for company. Based in Opole, Poland, he’s a busy and successful leader of photography workshops, an ambassador for Canon EMEA and has won many accolades. But it was patience that got him to this point in his career.
Paweł’s first camera was compact enough to take on fishing trips, and he first started taking landscape photographs on fishing trips with his grandfather in 2007. A Canon EOS 350D came along the next year, allowing Paweł to take his new hobby seriously and start entering competitions. It was in 2013, when Paweł had moved onto the Canon EOS 50D that he won the Panoramic category of the Sony World Photography Awards in 2013.
Today, Paweł’s work is characterised – like most landscape photographers – by the love of capturing a moment in time, by moody skies and bright sunbursts, and by dramatic weather in all its forms. Below, we’ll nosy around his kitbag, discover why the long game is the best game for developing your career, and why “being there” will always trump even the most beautiful AI-generated scenes.
Article continues below
Paweł Uchorczak is a Canon EMEA ambassador and landscape photographer, who specialises in images of other-worldly beauty. First picking up a camera in 2007, Paweł was inspired to take up photography by his Grandfather and the countryside around his hometown of Opole, Poland, and has forged a career leading workshops around Europe. He loves capturing high vantage points and mountainous regions, is inspired by romantic, misty scenes and relies on classic landscape composition and exposure, while still looking for unique “motifs”.
Hey Pawel. Tell us more about your photography journey. What inspired you to first pick up a camera?
From an early age, I spent a lot of time in nature – on bicycle trips with my parents or fishing with my grandfather. In 2007, I received my first camera from my grandfather to take photos of the fish he caught. As it happens when fishing, you can't always catch them, so I started to become interested in the landscapes around me.
A year later I got my first dream SLR camera, a Canon EOS 350D with an EF-S 18-55mm lens. Then I felt an incredible desire to take photos and go to outdoor photography events near my city of Opole. I trained my skills during trips to fields and meadows and twice a year to the Baltic Sea.
Then, I bought a Canon EOS 50D camera with a Canon EF-S 10-22mm lens, and I constantly developed my skills on further trips, either to the Tatra Mountains or to Czech Moravia. I had my first successes in photography competitions and exhibitions, and in 2015, I decided to start my own business, organising photography workshops.
You’ve been hosting workshops for a long time. How do you plan them?
I’ve been running photography workshops for almost a decade. Their main goal is to popularise landscape and travel photography. I look for interesting locations so that participants can practise their skills under my supervision. I take participants to picturesque places in Poland and Europe, show them how to work with light, and changing conditions and use their equipment appropriately.
What has working with others taught you about your photography?
When conducting workshops, I like how people get along with each other – they have a common passion that unites them. Another aspect is that everyone has a different perspective on a given frame or place. After the workshop, when we look back at the photos, I see very different frames, but we were in the same place. This is why I like spending time with other photographers. I like commitment and originality in other people at workshops. I also use it in my photographic adventure.
There must be challenging parts, too.
Landscape photography is not easy, as you are dependent on the weather and its whims. The most difficult thing during workshops is ensuring the right weather, especially when we are in the Lofoten Islands or Iceland where the weather can be terrible throughout the entire workshop. This also shows that we must approach nature with respect and catch special moments when the time is right.
The participants know well that the leader is not a magician and that nothing can be done in bad weather. One of the best things that can happen during a workshop is the satisfaction of participants who thank me for the training. Another element is looking at the world together and travelling. I am happy when I instil in the participants a love for landscape photography and when I see their joy in photography.
Have you always used Canon cameras?
Since 2008, I have consistently used Canon cameras and lenses. My current landscape setup includes the Canon EOS R6 Mark II, Canon EOS R6, Canon EF 16-35mm f/4L IS USM, Canon RF 70-200mm F4L IS USM, and Canon RF 24-70mm F2.8L IS USM lenses.
Canon has reliable equipment that I can rely on, regardless of weather conditions. The new Canon mirrorless cameras are an improved version of the DSLR cameras that I have been using since the beginning of serious photography. I appreciate the R6 Mark II's autofocus speed, excellent image quality, and workmanship. I'm glad that the button layout hasn't changed much since the 5D Mark III and 5D Mark IV.
What elements do you look for in landscape photography?
I look for an unusual approach to a given topic. Even though I visit popular places – where many photos have been taken before – I try to take different views. I hunt for dreamy, original weather conditions. The recipe for a successful landscape photo? An interesting sky, good composition and of course the best light.
What are your favourite scenes to shoot (and why)?
I love mountains and rolling hills. Apart from photography, I like hiking in the mountains. It's best to be somewhere high in the mountains at sunrise and photograph the protruding peaks above the sea of fog. Hills bathed in morning fog, just like in Tuscany or Moravia.
Do you think this viewpoint makes your work more unique?
I am very demanding when it comes to my photos, and I try to make them refined in every detail. I consider a photo to be a good one if I manage to capture a fleeting moment which I know will never happen again. I also rely on the classics, i.e. good composition and appropriate light. I also like to use different motifs so that it takes the recipient a while to find the right one.
Would you say you follow or break more traditional photography “rules”?
I grew up on the principles of photography, such as the rule of thirds, and I use them very often. There are situations when I break them, but I have to know that I do it consciously and it is not a coincidence.
What settings do you use for exposure and focus?
There are no universal settings. Everything depends on the direction of light and the type of composition. I like taking photos against the sun, where I use exposure bracketing or half-grey filters. To get a beautiful starburst on the Sun, I’ll use a narrow f16-18 aperture. In other situations, I use f9-11. Thanks to this, I have the appropriate depth of field and good resolution of the lens. When focusing, I usually use the 1/3 frame rule, and in situations when I know I won't be able to focus in the entire frame, I use the focus stacking technique.
Do you shoot in manual mode?
I use manual mode when taking panoramas and night photos, but I mostly use aperture priority mode.
How do you edit your images?
Through processing, I add my style to the photos, but it cannot be that processing is the most important thing. I have a saying that the better the conditions for taking photos, the less work you have to do on the computer. Editing is an integral part of the creative process, but I don’t rely only on it – there must be appropriate starting material.
Do you think AI-generated images can ever be as beautiful as real-life photographs?
Unfortunately, I'm afraid this will happen because AI images are becoming more and more refined and over time it will be more and more difficult to distinguish them from the real ones. We can generate any photo from anywhere, but you know what we won't have? Memories of being in this place, and experiencing what you felt when the photo was taken. No AI will generate this for us.
What are you most proud of in your work?
I am proud that I could be in such beautiful places and capture it in my photos. Taking photos gives me incredible pleasure. I take them mainly for myself, but I'm very pleased if other people like them, and the photo is appreciated in competitions or on social media.
What advice would you give other photographers wanting to start a photography business like yours?
Have patience in achieving your goals. Many photographers nowadays want to make a career very quickly and are surprised that the business is not going as they would like. It took me a few years before I sold my first photo, or did a session for money. Things didn’t always go as I wanted, but I finally achieved what I wanted and my work is my passion.
A longer version of this interview originally appeared in Issue 221 of Photo Plus magazine.
